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This is a follow-up to the review I posted on September 5. I just read this well written post. I am very excited for the results.. Before I was skeptical about ever seeing what I consider a healthy weight but this product and changed that skepticism into hope and has provided exactly what the proverbial doctor ordered. Thanks in advance …. All of this included with your first 4-week order, plus you get access to their team of experts who can give you the best advice for losing weight. If I were Marie Osmond, I wouldn't want to be known as a spokesperson for a company that has such bad reviews.

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So far I am enjoying being on Nutrisystem. All of the food does taste very good. The only negative thing is that when I first order they did not tell me that there was so much chocolate in the turbo box.

I specifically requested no chocolate. Maybe training is advisable for people helping people to order food. Thank you very much. We are so happy that Rachel was able to help you get started on the program. We are sorry that you received so much chocolate after requesting no chocolate. We will be sure to pass this along for coaching. Best wishes as you continue on the program.

I have been overcharged. Counselors at Nutrisystem keep telling me the issue has been addressed but I do not receive a refund. This is very upsetting and seems to me to be a bit fraudulent. Please refund my money! We are sorry to hear the NuMi promotion fell off after placing the order. I have been on the Women's Uniquely Yours Program for 13 months, and have lost over 90 pounds.

The frozen food is amazing, and I was never hungry or felt deprived. The delicious snacks and double chocolate muffins have kept me satisfied and I never felt deprived. Thank you for the kind words and keep up the awesome work! Canadian turkey bacon egg and cheese muffin missing cheese - Thank you for the response. I did not to think to take a picture of the back with the information.

If this occurs on the next I will. The cheese was missing on two of the sandwiches out of four on this order. I was trying to explain to the last counselor that I spoke to what was happening to me with eating the food and that it was making me sick.

This is not in regards to Kim in returns. Kim was helpful and very nice to me. Anyway, the last counselor I spoke to was so rude and talked over me and would not let me finish my sentence. It's really upsetting that I did not write her name down.

It would be the counselor that I spoke to before I spoke to Kim. We are so sorry that you had such a poor experience. We will definitely be looking into this and reaching out soon. I had a question about my food. Chat with your counselor. Very helpful but our chat was interrupted. I need to know how to continue after the first week. I am still confused on how to continue after the first week. Thank you for reaching out. We will be assigning this to a member of the Consumer Experience team to reach out and assist you.

The quality of food was pretty good with several options to choose from. Unfortunately when they were out of stock they substituted other food! Changing your plan such as delivery frequency was very difficult and why I left.

Thank you for the feedback. We are sorry that you left for those reason. We will be reaching out to get further information. Have a good one! Over the last several months, I have tried over and over to resolve an ongoing problem with order fulfillment. Customer service refused to help and refused my repeated requests to escalate the issue and finally Nutrisystem decided to dump me.

Even in my last e-mail communication with Nutrisystem where I yet again outlined the problem, the reply back from Nutrisystem completely ignored the majority of what I wrote. It looks like if Nutrisystem doesn't say anything about the problem, then it magically doesn't exist somehow. This shows that Nutrisystem has drastically fallen in terms of focusing on customer needs and flat out refuses to deal ethically with the customer.

We sincerely apologize for your experience. We certainly do not want a long-time member to feel such a way. We will be investigating this and reaching out soon. I have had a couple questions for your people there and I emailed them for a answer. First reply was very fast, second was a bit slower but they explained to me the reason why. I have been very satisfied with everything from Nutrisystem!!! Thank you for your patience and understanding.

We are happy to hear you got the answers you needed. We wish you the best of luck on the program! This is the 2nd time I've been on the NutriSystem plan. First time was a hit. Lost almost all my weight and kept it off for over a year. Just a little more weight to lose so I ordered again for 2 months. First shipment arrived on time and the food was terrific. Second shipment has the frozen food arrive a couple days late.

The 2nd shipment of non frozen food is still not here after being over a week, now almost a week and a half late. How am I to stay on the regiment with half the menu missing for over a week?

My assistant called NS as she ordered for me and asked for help—reimbursement— compensation of some sort. The reply from Nutri system? I even referred you to my sister and brother in law— who both signed up. We apologize that your 2nd order took longer than expected to get to you. We completely understand how this can throw someone off. We will be looking into this and reaching out.

I sincerely appreciate all the help that Sheila offered. I won't hesitate to contact your Team Rep should I have other questions.

See three emails I've previously sent. You don't honor your own company's policies. Food was extremely poorly packed, melted and opened packaging. We are sorry that you had such a poor experience with us. We will be taking a look at your account and reaching out shortly. Customers can benefit from an online health tracking platform and individualized counseling from dieticians and weight loss coaches. Nutrisystem offers separate plans for men and women, with different options and price points customized to your weight loss goals.

With meals containing 12 grams or less of sugar, Nutrisystem takes the guesswork out of choosing optimal low-glycemic foods to stabilize blood sugar -- which could be good for people with any degree of insulin resistance. Any busy person who does not have time to prepare their own meals would benefit from having frozen and other pre-packaged meals and snacks delivered to their home. Nutrisystem will ship all the food you need to your doorstep, with free shipping included. You can also find their products on QVC, at Costco and at several major grocers and mass retailers like Kroger and Walmart.

Transition and maintenance plan: This program provides long-term fat loss success rather than just focusing on initial weight loss, which is important for those who need to establish lifelong healthy habits.

While all of the meals offered by Nutrisystem are designed to comply with the USDA's recommendations for a nutritious diet, those who want to stick to a vegetarian diet can especially benefit from Nutrisystem. You can avoid all animal products and still lose weight with Nutrisystem, with over 90 vegetarian options. Many people fail at diets because their bodies crave snacks to maintain their blood sugar levels throughout the day.

Because Nutrisystem allows 6 meals a day, you can avoid a dip in your blood sugar that could lead to cravings. By eating smaller portions, you can eat more frequently and still reach your weight loss goals. Join our community to stay up-to-date with the latest reviews, recall notices, and brand recommendations. To see why, sign up below! Be in the know Get trending consumer news and recalls.

Thanks Keep an eye on your inbox, the lastest consumer news is on it's way! This review is featured by Nutrisystem. March 11, An active athlete 21 years a collegiate soccer referee , 13 years ago I contacted Parkinson's Disease. March 12, Nutrisystem response. Hello Willis, Thank you so much for your review and sharing your story.

March 9, Tomorrow is my last day on turbo take off. March 11, Nutrisystem response. Hello Lori, Thank you so much for your review. We will be sure to let his supervisor know what a great job he did on your phone call. Hi Karen, Thanks so much for sharing your review with us today. Hope you have a great day! The Nutrisystem Consumer Experience Team. Page 1 Reviews 1 - Not sure how to choose?

Thank you, you have successfully subscribed to our newsletter! As the early Adventist movement consolidated its beliefs, the question of the biblical day of rest and worship was raised. The foremost proponent of Sabbath -keeping among early Adventists was Joseph Bates. Bates was introduced to the Sabbath doctrine through a tract written by Millerite preacher Thomas M. This message was gradually accepted and formed the topic of the first edition of the church publication The Present Truth now the Adventist Review , which appeared in July For about 20 years, the Adventist movement consisted of a small, loosely knit group of people who came from many churches and whose primary means of connection and interaction was through James White's periodical The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald.

They embraced the doctrines of the Sabbath, the heavenly sanctuary interpretation of Daniel 8: Ellen White came to occupy a particularly central role; her many visions and spiritual leadership convinced her fellow Adventists that she possessed the gift of prophecy. The church was formally established in Battle Creek, Michigan , on May 21, , with a membership of 3, The denomination in the s turned to missionary work and revivals, tripling its membership to 16, by and establishing a presence beyond North America during the late 19th century.

Rapid growth continued, with 75, members in By this time the denomination operated two colleges, a medical school, a dozen academies, 27 hospitals, and 13 publishing houses. The church's beliefs and doctrines were first published in in Battle Creek Michigan as a brief statement called "A Synopsis of our Faith". White was not one of them. The Adventist Church adopted Trinitarian theology early in the 20th century and began to dialogue with other Protestant groups toward the middle of the century, eventually gaining wide recognition as a Protestant church.

Christianity Today recognized the Seventh-day Adventist church as " the fifth-largest Christian communion worldwide" in its January 22, issue.

The official teachings of the Seventh-day Adventist denomination are expressed in its 28 Fundamental Beliefs. This statement of beliefs was originally adopted by the General Conference in , with an additional belief number 11 being added in Adventist doctrine resembles trinitarian Protestant theology, with premillennial and Arminian emphases. Adventists uphold teachings such as the infallibility of Scripture , the substitutionary atonement , the resurrection of the dead and justification by faith alone , and are therefore often considered evangelical.

There is a generally recognized set of "distinctive" doctrines which distinguish Adventism from the rest of the Christian world, although not all of these teachings are wholly unique to Adventism: As with any religious movement, a theological spectrum exists within Adventism comparable to the fundamentalist -moderate- liberal spectrum in the wider Christian church and in other religions.

A variety of groups, movements or subcultures within the church present differing views on beliefs and lifestyle. The conservative end of the theological spectrum is represented by historic Adventists , who are characterized by their opposition to theological trends within the denomination, beginning in the s. The most liberal elements in the church are typically known as progressive Adventists progressive Adventists generally do not identify with liberal Christianity.

They tend to disagree with the traditional views concerning the inspiration of Ellen White , the Sabbath , a seven-day Creation , the doctrine of the remnant and the investigative judgment. The Biblical Research Institute is the official theological research center of the church. The church has two professional organizations for Adventist theologians who are affiliated with the denomination.

During the s the Adventist Theological Society was formed to provide a forum for more conservative theologians to meet and is held in conjunction with the Evangelical Theological Society. Part of Friday might be spent in preparation for the Sabbath; for example, preparing meals and tidying homes.

Adventists may gather for Friday evening worship to welcome in the Sabbath, a practice often known as Vespers. Adventists abstain from secular work on Saturday. They will also usually refrain from purely secular forms of recreation, such as competitive sport and watching non-religious programs on television.

However, nature walks, family-oriented activities, charitable work and other activities that are compassionate in nature are encouraged. Saturday afternoon activities vary widely depending on the cultural, ethnic and social background. In some churches, members and visitors will participate in a fellowship or " potluck " lunch and AYS Adventist Youth Service. The major weekly worship service occurs on Saturday, typically commencing with Sabbath School which is a structured time of small-group study at church.

Adventists make use of an officially produced "Sabbath School Lesson", which deals with a particular biblical text or doctrine every quarter. After a brief break, the community joins together again for a church service that follows a typical evangelical format, with a sermon as a central feature. Corporate singing, Scripture readings, prayers and an offering, including tithing or money collection , are other standard features. The instruments and forms of worship music vary greatly throughout the worldwide church.

Worship is known to be generally restrained. Adventist churches usually practice communion four times a year. It commences with a foot washing ceremony, known as the "Ordinance of Humility", based on the Gospel account of John The Ordinance of Humility is meant to symbolize Christ's washing of his disciples' feet at the Last Supper and to remind participants of the need to humbly serve one another.

Participants segregate by gender to separate rooms to conduct this ritual, although some congregations allow married couples to perform the ordinance on each other and families are often encouraged to participate together. After its completion, participants return to the main sanctuary for consumption of the Lord's Supper , which consists of unleavened bread and unfermented grape juice.

Since the s when the church began, wholeness and health have been an emphasis of the Adventist church. The church discourages its members from consuming alcoholic beverages , tobacco or illegal drugs compare Christianity and alcohol.

In addition, some Adventists avoid coffee , tea , cola , and other beverages containing caffeine. The pioneers of the Adventist Church had much to do with the common acceptance of breakfast cereals into the Western diet, and the "modern commercial concept of cereal food" originated among Adventists. His development of breakfast cereals as a health food led to the founding of Kellogg's by his brother William.

In both Australia and New Zealand , the church-owned Sanitarium Health and Wellbeing Company is a leading manufacturer of health and vegetarian-related products, most prominently Weet-Bix.

Research funded by the U. National Institutes of Health has shown that the average Adventist in California lives 4 to 10 years longer than the average Californian. The research , as cited by the cover story of the November issue of National Geographic , asserts that Adventists live longer because they do not smoke or drink alcohol, have a day of rest every week, and maintain a healthy, low-fat vegetarian diet that is rich in nuts and beans.

He cites the Adventist emphasis on health, diet, and Sabbath-keeping as primary factors for Adventist longevity. Adventists' clean lifestyles were recognized by the U. The first task for the scientists was to find people willing to be infected by pathogens that could make them very sick.

They found them in the followers of the Seventh-day Adventist faith. Although willing to serve their country when drafted, the Adventists refused to bear arms.

As a result many of them became medics. When contacted in late , the Adventist hierarchy readily agreed to this plan. For Camp Detrick scientists, church members were a model test population, since most of them were in excellent health and they neither drank, smoked, nor used caffeine. From the perspective of the volunteers, the tests gave them a way to fulfill their patriotic duty while remaining true to their beliefs.

The Adventist understanding of marriage is a lawfully binding lifelong commitment of a man and a woman. The Church Manual refers to the origination of the marriage institution in Eden and points to the union between Adam and Eve as the pattern for all future marriages. Adventists hold that marriage is a divine institution established by God Himself before the fall. They hold that God celebrated the first marriage and the institution has as its origin the Creator of the universe and was one of the first gifts of God to man, and it is "one of the two institutions that, after the fall, Adam brought with him beyond the gates of Paradise.

The Old and New Testament texts are interpreted by some Adventists to teach that wives should submit to their husbands in marriage. Adventists hold that heterosexual marriages are the only biblically ordained grounds for sexual intimacy. Adventists do not perform same-sex marriages , and individuals who are openly homosexual but not "practicing" cannot be ordained, but may hold church office and membership.

Current church policy states that openly homosexual and "practicing" persons are to be welcomed into the church services and treated with the love and kindness afforded any human being. The official Adventist position on abortion is that "abortions for reasons of birth control , gender selection , or convenience are not condoned.

Adventists believe in and encourage abstinence for both men and women before marriage. The church disagrees with extra-marital cohabitation. The Adventist church has released official statements in relation to other ethical issues such as euthanasia against active euthanasia but permissive of passive withdrawal of medical support to allow death to occur , [60] birth control in favor of it for married couples if used correctly, but against abortion as birth control and premarital sex in any case [61] and human cloning against it while the technology is unsafe and would result in defective births or abortions.

Adventists have traditionally held socially conservative attitudes regarding dress and entertainment. These attitudes are reflected in one of the church's fundamental beliefs:. For the Spirit to recreate in us the character of our Lord we involve ourselves only in those things which will produce Christlike purity, health, and joy in our lives. This means that our amusement and entertainment should meet the highest standards of Christian taste and beauty.

While recognizing cultural differences, our dress is to be simple, modest, and neat, befitting those whose true beauty does not consist of outward adornment but in the imperishable ornament of a gentle and quiet spirit. Accordingly, many Adventists are opposed to practices such as body piercing and tattoos and refrain from the wearing of jewelry, including such items as earrings and bracelets. Some also oppose the displaying of wedding bands, although banning wedding bands is not the position of the General Conference.

Though it seems unbelievable to some, I'm thankful that when I grew up in the church [in the s and s] I was taught not to go to the movie theater, dance, listen to popular music, read novels, wear jewelry, play cards, bowl, play pool, or even be fascinated by professional sports. Adventists often cite the writings of Ellen White, especially her books, Counsels on Diet and Foods , Counsels to Parents, Teachers and Students , and Education as inspired sources for Christian deportment.

The Adventist church officially opposes the practice of gambling. The Youth Department of the Adventist church runs age specific clubs for children and youth worldwide. Pathfinders is a club for 5th to 10th grade up to 12th in Florida Conference boys and girls.

It is similar to and based partly on the Scouting movement. Pathfinders exposes young people to such activities as camping, community service, personal mentorship, and skills-based education, and trains them for leadership in the church.

Yearly "Camporees" are held in individual Conferences, where Pathfinders from the region gather and participate in events similar to Boy Scouts' Jamborees. After a person enters 9th grade, he or she is eligible to join Teen Leadership Training within Pathfinders.

In the 11th grade, typically after being a member of a club, they can become a Pathfinder or Adventurer staff member and begin the "Master Guide" program similar to Scout Master which develops leaders for both Adventurers and Pathfinders. The Seventh-day Adventist Church operates youth camps all over North America and many other parts of the world. Each camp varies in the activities they offer but most have archery, swimming, horses, arts and crafts, nature, high ropes challenge course, and many other common camp activities.

The Seventh-day Adventist church is governed by a form of representation which resembles the presbyterian system of church organization. Four levels of organization exist within the world church.

Each organization is governed by a general "session" which occurs at certain intervals. This is usually when administrative decisions are made. The president of the General Conference, for instance, is elected at the General Conference Session every five years. Delegates to a session are appointed by organizations at a lower level.

For example, each local church appoints delegates to a conference session. Within a geographic region, ministers receive roughly equal pay irrespective of the size of their church. The Church Manual [70] gives provisions for each level of government to create educational, healthcare, publishing, and other institutions that are seen within the call of the Great Commission. The ordained clergy of the Adventist church are known as ministers or pastors.

Ministers are neither elected nor employed by the local churches, but instead are appointed by the local Conferences, which assign them responsibility over a single church or group of churches.

Ordination is a formal recognition bestowed upon pastors and elders after usually a number of years of service. In most parts of the world, women may not be given the title "ordained", although some are employed in ministry, and may be "commissioned" or "ordained-commissioned". A number of lay offices exist within the local church, including the ordained positions of elder and deacon. Elders serve a mainly administrative and pastoral role, but must also be capable of providing religious leadership particularly in the absence of an ordained minister.

The role of deacons is to assist in the smooth functioning of a local church and to maintain church property. Although the church has no written policy forbidding the ordination of women, it has traditionally ordained only men.

In recent years the ordination of women has been the subject of heated debate, especially in North America and Europe. In the Adventist church, candidates for ordination are chosen by local conferences which usually administer about 50— local congregations and approved by unions which serve about 6—12 conferences.

The General Conference, the church's world headquarters, claims the right to declare the worldwide qualifications for ordination, including gender requirements. After that came the "heavy" meats, such as pork and beef , as well as vegetables and nuts, including pears and chestnuts, both considered difficult to digest.

It was popular, and recommended by medical expertise, to finish the meal with aged cheese and various digestives. The most ideal food was that which most closely matched the humour of human beings, i. Food should preferably also be finely chopped, ground, pounded and strained to achieve a true mixture of all the ingredients.

White wine was believed to be cooler than red and the same distinction was applied to red and white vinegar. Milk was moderately warm and moist, but the milk of different animals was often believed to differ. Egg yolks were considered to be warm and moist while the whites were cold and moist. Skilled cooks were expected to conform to the regimen of humoral medicine. Even if this limited the combinations of food they could prepare, there was still ample room for artistic variation by the chef.

The caloric content and structure of medieval diet varied over time, from region to region, and between classes. However, for most people, the diet tended to be high-carbohydrate, with most of the budget spent on, and the majority of calories provided by, cereals and alcohol such as beer.

Even though meat was highly valued by all, lower classes often could not afford it, nor were they allowed by the church to consume it every day. In one early 15th-century English aristocratic household for which detailed records are available that of the Earl of Warwick , gentle members of the household received a staggering 3.

In the household of Henry Stafford in , gentle members received 2. In monasteries, the basic structure of the diet was laid down by the Rule of Saint Benedict in the 7th century and tightened by Pope Benedict XII in , but as mentioned above monks were adept at "working around" these rules.

This was circumvented in part by declaring that offal , and various processed foods such as bacon , were not meat. Secondly, Benedictine monasteries contained a room called the misericord , where the Rule of Saint Benedict did not apply, and where a large number of monks ate.

Each monk would be regularly sent either to the misericord or to the refectory. When Pope Benedict XII ruled that at least half of all monks should be required to eat in the refectory on any given day, monks responded by excluding the sick and those invited to the abbot's table from the reckoning.

The overall caloric intake is subject to some debate. As a consequence of these excesses, obesity was common among upper classes. The regional specialties that are a feature of early modern and contemporary cuisine were not in evidence in the sparser documentation that survives. Instead, medieval cuisine can be differentiated by the cereals and the oils that shaped dietary norms and crossed ethnic and, later, national boundaries.

Geographical variation in eating was primarily the result of differences in climate, political administration, and local customs that varied across the continent. Though sweeping generalizations should be avoided, more or less distinct areas where certain foodstuffs dominated can be discerned.

In the British Isles , northern France , the Low Countries , the northern German-speaking areas, Scandinavia and the Baltic , the climate was generally too harsh for the cultivation of grapes and olives. In the south, wine was the common drink for both rich and poor alike though the commoner usually had to settle for cheap second pressing wine while beer was the commoner's drink in the north and wine an expensive import.

Citrus fruits though not the kinds most common today and pomegranates were common around the Mediterranean. Dried figs and dates were available in the north, but were used rather sparingly in cooking.

Olive oil was a ubiquitous ingredient in Mediterranean cultures, but remained an expensive import in the north where oils of poppy , walnut, hazel and filbert were the most affordable alternatives.

Butter and lard , especially after the terrible mortality during the Black Death made them less scarce, were used in considerable quantities in the northern and northwestern regions, especially in the Low Countries. Almost universal in middle and upper class cooking all over Europe was the almond , which was in the ubiquitous and highly versatile almond milk , which was used as a substitute in dishes that otherwise required eggs or milk, though the bitter variety of almonds came along much later.

In Europe there were typically two meals a day: The two-meal system remained consistent throughout the late Middle Ages. Smaller intermediate meals were common, but became a matter of social status, as those who did not have to perform manual labor could go without them.

For practical reasons, breakfast was still eaten by working men, and was tolerated for young children, women, the elderly and the sick.

Because the church preached against gluttony and other weaknesses of the flesh, men tended to be ashamed of the weak practicality of breakfast. Lavish dinner banquets and late-night reresopers from Occitan rèire-sopar , "late supper" with considerable amounts of alcoholic beverage were considered immoral. The latter were especially associated with gambling, crude language, drunkenness, and lewd behavior. As with almost every part of life at the time, a medieval meal was generally a communal affair.

The entire household, including servants, would ideally dine together. To sneak off to enjoy private company was considered a haughty and inefficient egotism in a world where people depended very much on each other. When possible, rich hosts retired with their consorts to private chambers where the meal could be enjoyed in greater exclusivity and privacy. Being invited to a lord's chambers was a great privilege and could be used as a way to reward friends and allies and to awe subordinates.

It allowed lords to distance themselves further from the household and to enjoy more luxurious treats while serving inferior food to the rest of the household that still dined in the great hall. At major occasions and banquets, however, the host and hostess generally dined in the great hall with the other diners. However, it can be assumed there were no such extravagant luxuries as multiple courses , luxurious spices or hand-washing in scented water in everyday meals.

Things were different for the wealthy. Before the meal and between courses, shallow basins and linen towels were offered to guests so they could wash their hands, as cleanliness was emphasized. Social codes made it difficult for women to uphold the ideal of immaculate neatness and delicacy while enjoying a meal, so the wife of the host often dined in private with her entourage or ate very little at such feasts.

She could then join dinner only after the potentially messy business of eating was done. Overall, fine dining was a predominantly male affair, and it was uncommon for anyone but the most honored of guests to bring his wife or her ladies-in-waiting.

The hierarchical nature of society was reinforced by etiquette where the lower ranked were expected to help the higher, the younger to assist the elder, and men to spare women the risk of sullying dress and reputation by having to handle food in an unwomanly fashion. Shared drinking cups were common even at lavish banquets for all but those who sat at the high table , as was the standard etiquette of breaking bread and carving meat for one's fellow diners.

Food was mostly served on plates or in stew pots, and diners would take their share from the dishes and place it on trenchers of stale bread, wood or pewter with the help of spoons or bare hands. In lower-class households it was common to eat food straight off the table. Knives were used at the table, but most people were expected to bring their own, and only highly favored guests would be given a personal knife. A knife was usually shared with at least one other dinner guest, unless one was of very high rank or well-acquainted with the host.

Forks for eating were not in widespread usage in Europe until the early modern period , and early on were limited to Italy. Even there it was not until the 14th century that the fork became common among Italians of all social classes. The change in attitudes can be illustrated by the reactions to the table manners of the Byzantine princess Theodora Doukaina in the late 11th century.

She was the wife of Domenico Selvo , the Doge of Venice , and caused considerable dismay among upstanding Venetians. The foreign consort's insistence on having her food cut up by her eunuch servants and then eating the pieces with a golden fork shocked and upset the diners so much that there was a claim that Peter Damian , Cardinal Bishop of Ostia , later interpreted her refined foreign manners as pride and referred to her as " All types of cooking involved the direct use of fire. Kitchen stoves did not appear until the 18th century, and cooks had to know how to cook directly over an open fire.

Ovens were used, but they were expensive to construct and only existed in fairly large households and bakeries. It was common for a community to have shared ownership of an oven to ensure that the bread baking essential to everyone was made communal rather than private.

There were also portable ovens designed to be filled with food and then buried in hot coals, and even larger ones on wheels that were used to sell pies in the streets of medieval towns. But for most people, almost all cooking was done in simple stewpots, since this was the most efficient use of firewood and did not waste precious cooking juices, making potages and stews the most common dishes. This was considered less of a problem in a time of back-breaking toil, famine, and a greater acceptance—even desirability—of plumpness; only the poor or sick, and devout ascetics , were thin.

Fruit was readily combined with meat, fish and eggs. The recipe for Tart de brymlent , a fish pie from the recipe collection Forme of Cury , includes a mix of figs , raisins , apples and pears with fish salmon , codling or haddock and pitted damson plums under the top crust. This meant that food had to be "tempered" according to its nature by an appropriate combination of preparation and mixing certain ingredients, condiments and spices; fish was seen as being cold and moist, and best cooked in a way that heated and dried it, such as frying or oven baking, and seasoned with hot and dry spices; beef was dry and hot and should therefore be boiled ; pork was hot and moist and should therefore always be roasted.

In a recipe for quince pie, cabbage is said to work equally well, and in another turnips could be replaced by pears. The completely edible shortcrust pie did not appear in recipes until the 15th century.

Before that the pastry was primarily used as a cooking container in a technique known as ' huff paste '. Extant recipe collections show that gastronomy in the Late Middle Ages developed significantly. New techniques, like the shortcrust pie and the clarification of jelly with egg whites began to appear in recipes in the late 14th century and recipes began to include detailed instructions instead of being mere memory aids to an already skilled cook.

In most households, cooking was done on an open hearth in the middle of the main living area, to make efficient use of the heat. This was the most common arrangement, even in wealthy households, for most of the Middle Ages, where the kitchen was combined with the dining hall.

Towards the Late Middle Ages a separate kitchen area began to evolve. The first step was to move the fireplaces towards the walls of the main hall, and later to build a separate building or wing that contained a dedicated kitchen area, often separated from the main building by a covered arcade. This way, the smoke, odors and bustle of the kitchen could be kept out of sight of guests, and the fire risk lessened. Many basic variations of cooking utensils available today, such as frying pans , pots , kettles , and waffle irons , already existed, although they were often too expensive for poorer households.

Other tools more specific to cooking over an open fire were spits of various sizes, and material for skewering anything from delicate quails to whole oxen. Utensils were often held directly over the fire or placed into embers on tripods. To assist the cook there were also assorted knives, stirring spoons, ladles and graters. In wealthy households one of the most common tools was the mortar and sieve cloth, since many medieval recipes called for food to be finely chopped, mashed, strained and seasoned either before or after cooking.

This was based on a belief among physicians that the finer the consistency of food, the more effectively the body would absorb the nourishment. It also gave skilled cooks the opportunity to elaborately shape the results.

Fine-textured food was also associated with wealth; for example, finely milled flour was expensive, while the bread of commoners was typically brown and coarse. A typical procedure was farcing from the Latin farcio , "to cram" , to skin and dress an animal, grind up the meat and mix it with spices and other ingredients and then return it into its own skin, or mold it into the shape of a completely different animal. The kitchen staff of huge noble or royal courts occasionally numbered in the hundreds: While an average peasant household often made do with firewood collected from the surrounding woodlands, the major kitchens of households had to cope with the logistics of daily providing at least two meals for several hundred people.

Guidelines on how to prepare for a two-day banquet can be found in the cookbook Du fait de cuisine "On cookery" written in in part to compete with the court of Burgundy [44] by Maistre Chiquart, master chef of Amadeus VIII, Duke of Savoy. Food preservation methods were basically the same as had been used since antiquity, and did not change much until the invention of canning in the early 19th century.

The most common and simplest method was to expose foodstuffs to heat or wind to remove moisture , thereby prolonging the durability if not the flavor of almost any type of food from cereals to meats; the drying of food worked by drastically reducing the activity of various water-dependent microorganisms that cause decay. In warm climates this was mostly achieved by leaving food out in the sun, and in the cooler northern climates by exposure to strong winds especially common for the preparation of stockfish , or in warm ovens, cellars, attics, and at times even in living quarters.

Subjecting food to a number of chemical processes such as smoking , salting , brining , conserving or fermenting also made it keep longer. Most of these methods had the advantage of shorter preparation times and of introducing new flavors. Smoking or salting meat of livestock butchered in autumn was a common household strategy to avoid having to feed more animals than necessary during the lean winter months.

Vegetables, eggs or fish were also often pickled in tightly packed jars, containing brine and acidic liquids lemon juice , verjuice or vinegar. Another method was to seal the food by cooking it in sugar or honey or fat, in which it was then stored.

Microbial modification was also encouraged, however, by a number of methods; grains, fruit and grapes were turned into alcoholic drinks thus killing any pathogens, and milk was fermented and curdled into a multitude of cheeses or buttermilk.

The majority of the European population before industrialization lived in rural communities or isolated farms and households. The norm was self-sufficiency with only a small percentage of production being exported or sold in markets. Large towns were exceptions and required their surrounding hinterlands to support them with food and fuel.

The dense urban population could support a wide variety of food establishments that catered to various social groups. Many of the poor city dwellers had to live in cramped conditions without access to a kitchen or even a hearth, and many did not own the equipment for basic cooking. Food from vendors was in such cases the only option. Cookshops could either sell ready-made hot food, an early form of fast food , or offer cooking services while the customers supplied some or all of the ingredients.

Travellers, such as pilgrims en route to a holy site, made use of professional cooks to avoid having to carry their provisions with them. For the more affluent, there were many types of specialist that could supply various foods and condiments: Well-off citizens who had the means to cook at home could on special occasions hire professionals when their own kitchen or staff could not handle the burden of throwing a major banquet.

Urban cookshops that catered to workers or the destitute were regarded as unsavory and disreputable places by the well-to-do and professional cooks tended to have a bad reputation. Geoffrey Chaucer 's Hodge of Ware, the London cook from the Canterbury Tales , is described as a sleazy purveyor of unpalatable food.

French cardinal Jacques de Vitry 's sermons from the early 13th century describe sellers of cooked meat as an outright health hazard. The stereotypical cook in art and literature was male, hot-tempered, prone to drunkenness, and often depicted guarding his stewpot from being pilfered by both humans and animals. In the early 15th century, the English monk John Lydgate articulated the beliefs of many of his contemporaries by proclaiming that "Hoot ffir [fire] and smoke makith many an angry cook.

The period between c. More intense agriculture on an ever-increasing acreage resulted in a shift from animal products, like meat and dairy, to various grains and vegetables as the staple of the majority population.

A bread-based diet became gradually more common during the 15th century and replaced warm intermediate meals that were porridge- or gruel-based. Leavened bread was more common in wheat-growing regions in the south, while unleavened flatbread of barley, rye or oats remained more common in northern and highland regions, and unleavened flatbread was also common as provisions for troops.

The most common grains were rye , barley , buckwheat , millet and oats. Rice remained a fairly expensive import for most of the Middle Ages and was grown in northern Italy only towards the end of the period. Wheat was common all over Europe and was considered to be the most nutritious of all grains, but was more prestigious and thus more expensive.

The finely sifted white flour that modern Europeans are most familiar with was reserved for the bread of the upper classes. As one descended the social ladder, bread became coarser, darker, and its bran content increased. In times of grain shortages or outright famine, grains could be supplemented with cheaper and less desirable substitutes like chestnuts , dried legumes , acorns , ferns , and a wide variety of more or less nutritious vegetable matter.

One of the most common constituents of a medieval meal, either as part of a banquet or as a small snack, were sops , pieces of bread with which a liquid like wine , soup , broth , or sauce could be soaked up and eaten. Another common sight at the medieval dinner table was the frumenty , a thick wheat porridge often boiled in a meat broth and seasoned with spices.

Porridges were also made of every type of grain and could be served as desserts or dishes for the sick, if boiled in milk or almond milk and sweetened with sugar. Pies filled with meats, eggs, vegetables, or fruit were common throughout Europe, as were turnovers , fritters , doughnuts , and many similar pastries. By the Late Middle Ages biscuits cookies in the U. Grain, either as bread crumbs or flour, was also the most common thickener of soups and stews, alone or in combination with almond milk.

The importance of bread as a daily staple meant that bakers played a crucial role in any medieval community. Bread consumption was high in most of Western Europe by the 14th century.

Estimates of bread consumption from different regions are fairly similar: Among the first town guilds to be organized were the bakers', and laws and regulations were passed to keep bread prices stable.

The English Assize of Bread and Ale of listed extensive tables where the size, weight, and price of a loaf of bread were regulated in relation to grain prices. The baker's profit margin stipulated in the tables was later increased through successful lobbying from the London Baker's Company by adding the cost of everything from firewood and salt to the baker's wife, house, and dog. Since bread was such a central part of the medieval diet, swindling by those who were trusted with supplying the precious commodity to the community was considered a serious offense.

Bakers who were caught tampering with weights or adulterating dough with less expensive ingredients could receive severe penalties. This gave rise to the " baker's dozen ":